RAF P-51 Mustang Mk1A

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I'm not at home at the moment. So I can't post more shots of the P-51.But there is a pic from the forum gallery I posted some time ago.
 
That looks pretty good Wojtek,I had not delved to far into the instructions but am glad to see she has the pointed props as oppose to the paddle props in the kit.Cheers Kevin
 
I just read where the recce P51 pilots at least in 414 or 400 sqn were allowed to pick their own letters for the aircraft they flew hence the single N as indicated in the pic
 
All P-51B's that survived past February (-1's) and all P-51B-5's that left the NAA factory before block 43-6563 were retrofitted with 85 Gallon tank in the field Service Centers. The -5 after serial number 6563 were fitted at the factory and redesignated the P-51B-7NA.

I am not sure where in the production series the P-51C-5NT departed the Dallas plant with the fuse tank installed... but all 8th AF P-51B/C's had the fuse tank after March 1944.. AFAIK the RAF units with the Mk III had the tanks installed after 43-6563 but did not use them operationally very much.

Recon P-51s would not have a problem installing the camera into a B but the mod placed the camera in lowere fuse above the wing trailing edge to permit room for tank, radio above tank, and radio aft of the fuse tank.
 
On RAF P51B/C's (Mustang III), depending on requirement and fit, the lower rear fuselge, port side mounting was used, for an oblique camera, and also a mounting, again port side,oblique, immediately behind the pilot's head armour, where the U.S. radio and racking was situated. Kevin is building the RAF Mustang 1 (P51A) Tac Recon, which had the camera mount as just described; I'm not 100% sure about the rear fuselage camera on this model though.
 
Wurger said:
Here a few I have found via the Net. Source unknown.
Click to expand...

The first photo is a Mustang Mk II, FR900, Twente, April 1945. It was used as the personal aircraft of G.Cpt A.F.Anderson OC 35 Wing from mid-November 1944 until July 1945. Before that it had belonged to 2 Squadron where it was flown by successive COs S.Lrs Mike Gray and C.E.Maitland and the code letter might date from that period.

Squadron codes were order removed from tactical-reconnaissance aircraft in May 1943 because of concerns that they made the aircraft too visible during low-level attacks. Just a single identification letter was retained. At first, behind the roundel but later in front of the roundel became standard practice. Squadron codes were reinstated on tactical-reconnaissance Spitfires at the end of the war.
 
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Nice info on the FR900 Antoni.

Here a shot of Mk.I coded X..... souirce unknown.
 

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Here you go Kevin, some colour pics of Mk1's from 2 Sqn at Sawbridgeworth, taken on the Press day in July 1942. The first three show XV-U, AG550, which was lost when it hit a hill, at Kimmeridge, Dorset, in fog on 26 May 1943, killing the pilot.
The second two, obviously the same shot, but one with better satuaration, show XV-E, AG633 over Essex. This aircraft also crashed, overshooting on landing on 29 October 1942, at Sawbridgeworth.
Detail points to note:- the leading edge yellow I.D. stripes extend from wing tip to the the root fillet. Individual code letter repeated under the nose, and natural metal, early style pilot's seat.
Hope these are useful.
(images from RAF Museum, believed to be Charles Brown originals)
 

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Those are some nice Pic's Terry.I saw a pic of a nose in B/W and said MMguns on the underside .Do you guys think something like that would be still an operational machine upon D-Day?I am not concerned about marking I can paint most of them except for the a/c id numbers I can come up with out of spares.Cheers Kevin
 
As memo serves the Mk.Is were armed with the fuselage MGs .And if these were still using operationally these would be. Mk.IIs weren't equipped with these underside MGs mostly.The FR919 coded N was Mk.II. The one FD472 coded M was Mk.IA. Both of these Mustangs weren't equipped with the fuselage MGs.
But AG550 of the 2nd RAF Squadron coded XV-U was NA73 Mustang Mk.I armed with these MGs on underside, for instance.

And in addition here a few more shots of my old Mustang Mk.II in 1/72 scale.
 

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Wojtek has it right. The MkII's were still operational on, and after D-Day, in the tactical recce and Army cooperation role. As for armament, you'd need to verify what was carried by a particular aircraft, as the nose guns were often deleted, or, the other way around, the nose guns retained, and the wing guns temporarily deleted depending on operational requirements.
 
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